Entrepreneurs often have plenty of ideas about the reports, marketing pieces and other items they’d like to produce, but lack the equipment to print them.

That’s where online printing comes in. The concept allows you to design your own projects, order them online, and either pick them up at a retail location or have them delivered.

In other words, it’s a hybrid DIY printing option.

Baby K'tan, which sells baby carriers and other products, uses online printing for some projects and a commercial printer for others.

“We like having various printing options available based on needs and budget,” said Reina Christian, the firm’s marketing coordinator. “We look at every dollar we spend, and we use online printing when it makes sense.”

And if you prefer to get in-store help with your project, you can also use a retailer’s online printing site to learn about options, pricing. and how to set up your files before going to the bricks-and-mortar location.

Here are a few advantages of online printing:

1. Flexibility

How and where you should print depends in part on how much you need to print.

Online printing works for the Davie, Fla.-based Baby K'tan when it needs small quantities. That often means coupons, gift certificates, greeting cards or, in some cases, business cards.

“With a small growing company, our titles are constantly growing and changing — thus smaller numbers of business cards ordered once or twice per year,” Christian said. “This helps us to avoid wasting cards with outdated titles or contact information.”

Orders for trade-show flyers advertising new products or special pricing also typically go to an online printer.

2. Cost

By using your own labor for the design work, you might be able to save money.

Many projects are straightforward, and even if you don’t have an artistic bent, templates are often available for presentations, newsletters, catalogs and other jobs.

Donna Turner, who owns Reptile Adventure in Richmond, Va., has made a long list of items to promote her company, which provides educational shows. They include business cards, rack cards, postcards, stickers, name badges, banners and shirts.

“I own a very small family business, and without low-cost online printing companies I could not afford my marketing material,” she said.

3. Simplicity

Angela Lawrence, managing director of the Tulsa, Okla.-based advertising agency AcrobatAnt, balances budget, quality and speed when recommending a vendor. She typically gets two or three estimates.

“The online printers definitely make it easy to determine the cost and turnaround without needing to wait on a printer sales rep to put together an estimate,” Lawrence said. “For complicated projects, I appreciate the consultative nature of our traditional printers, but for simple projects such as brochures and stationery, online is often in the consideration set of options.”

She said some clients request specific online printers because they’ve used them and liked their quality and service.

4. Convenience

With its quick turnarounds and widespread availability, online printing can be a boon to business travelers.

Paul Brown, managing principal of Liberty Lake, Wash.-based Brownstone Business Advisors, often finds himself in a hotel room, in an airport, or on a plane putting the finishing touches on a financial plan or summary. He uploads it to an online printer and picks it up on the way to see the client.

Brown said: “There are times when I would not have been able to complete a project without it.”

James Ritchie is a journalist living in the Greensboro, N.C., area. He was a reporter for the Business Courier in Cincinnati for eight years, covering health care, technology and Procter & Gamble. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Kentucky.